Cloth finishing machine



July 2, 19353 J. F. BANNON 2,006,533

CLOTH FINISHING MACHINE Filed NOV. 10, 1934 INVENTOR. QGHN iTfin/wvolv.

ATTORNEYS Patented July 2,' 1935 UNI-TED STATES PATENT OFFICE CLOTH FINISHING MACHINE I John F. Bannon, Lonsdale, R. I.

Application November 10, 1934, Serial No. 752,418

" 3 Claims.

My invention relates to a cloth finishing machine such as is used for shrinking shirtings and I similar fabrics.

In cloth shrinking machines of the above type a large rotatable drum heated by steam or other suitable means is provided and the moistened or damp fabric to be treated or shrunk is brought into contact with the peripheral surface of the drum and moves with the latter throughout a large portion of its periphery and is then withdrawn. 0n coming into contact with the rotating heated drum, the fabric to be treated is brought into contact with an endless blanket and passes with the blanket over a roll and thence throughout its movement and contact with the drum is held tightly against the surface of the drum. The blanket then continues out of contact with the drum .and preferably through a dryingmechanism, back to its original position into contact with a succeeding length of the fabric. N,

In passing over the entrance roll the fabric is on the outer curved surface of the blanket and, consequently, has a greater length for a given are or curvature and then coming into contact with the drum, this relation is reversed so .that the length of fabric originally in contact with a given length of the blanket is now of slightly less length than its corresponding blanket portion. This provides for the change in 'length of the fabric during the shrinking operation. As the shrinkage is diiff'prentifor different fabrics, this difference maybe. accommodated by selecting a proper thickness of the blanket for the particular shrinkage of the fabric to be treated.

I-Ieretofore this has been done by employing blankets of different thicknesses, one for each gradation in shrinkage of the fabric. This has not only necessitated the maintenance of a large number of blankets of;,assorted thicknesses, but with each change of fabric to one of different shrinking qualities the entire blanket must be removed from the machine and a new one substituted. As this generally. involves dismounting the rollers and other apparatus through which the blanket must pass, it involves a very considerable expense.

My. present invention avoids the above difiiculties and provides a means whereby the various ---blanket thicknesses-required at the entrance roll pray-be attained with a blanket having an unvarying 1 thickness and whereby the effective thickness or the blanket assembly at the entrance roll may be quickly andeasily adjusted without removing the entire endless blanket from the machine. I

The various features of the invention are illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which Fig. 1 shows diagrammatically a side elevation of a fabric finishing machine embodying a preferred form of the invention, driving mechanism for the machine being omitted to more clearly set forth the invention.

Fig. 2 is a front view of a portion of the entrance roll mechanism, and

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of a part of the mechanism showing the entrance roller construction.

In my invention an endless blanket is mounted in the same general manner as is customary with machines of this type but an auxiliary means is employed to provide an effective blanket thickness'at the entrance roller that may be readily adjusted to suit the requirements of different fabrics. In the preferred form of the invention this auxiliary means comprises an inner endless blanket having a much smaller length than that of the main blanket and lying between the main blanket and the entrance roller so that it adds its thickness effectively to that of the main blanket. The auxiliary blanket may be kept taut on the roll by means of a second roll which may (be adjusted to tighten the auxiliary blanket on the entrance roll and also to tighten or loosen it against the heated-rotating drum. To adjust the effective thickness at the entrance roll it is, therefore, only necessary to loosen and remove the auxiliary blanket and replace it with one of appropriate selected thickness.

Referring to the accompanying drawing, a fabric in to be shrunk or finished isdra-wn below and about a guide roller! I, thence upwardly and about an entrance roller 12 and into contact with a heated drum l3 rotatably mounted on a supporting frame 14. As the fabric I0 passes upwardly and about the entrance roller l2, it rests on the surface of an endless blanket I5 and passes with this blanket into contact with the drum l3, the fabric being between the blanket l5 and the drum I3. It will be apparent that the radius of the fabric I0 as it pas ses about the roller I2 is greater than that of the roller and of the blanket l5 and, consequently, has a greater length for a given angle. As the fabric passes into contact with the drum l3 this relation is reversed so that the fabric may shrink without changing its surface contact with the blanket. The blanket and fabric then rotate with the heated drum throughout the greater part of the periphery of the latter, the cloth being dried by this passage and then leaving the drum below an exit roller IS. The blanket l5 then returns about a succession of rollers l1 and a'drying cylinder or drum ill to its original position over the entrance roller l2. V

In my invention anauxiliary inner blanket is is provided between the entrance roller I2 and the blanket Ill. The auxiliary blanket I9 is held tautly on the roller l2 by means of an adjustable roll 20. The relation of the blanket I! to the blanket I5 is such that a contraction of the latter takes place as it passes from the roller l2 to the drum l3 so that the eflfect is as though a blanket were used of substantially the thickness of the blanket l5 plus the thickness ofthe blanket IS. The blanket l9 passes for a short distance in contact with the blanket l5 and then returns about the roller 20. In the further progress of the blanket l5 and fabric In about the drum l3 to the exit roller 16 the effective thickness of the blanket is of no great consequence, so that by the use of the above auxiliary blanket the effect of blankets of different thicknesses may be obtained by merely changing the blanket l9. This is a relatively much simpler matter than changing the blanket [5, as it involves merely a loosening of the roller 20 and then slipping out the auxiliary blanket without disturbing the main blanket except at the entrance roller l2 whereas, to remove and replace the main blanket requires its removal from each of the rollers 11 and the drying mechanism I8.

To remove the auxiliary blanket IS, the roller 20 is so mounted that it may be lifted upwardly and away from the drum l3. For this purpose the bearing 2| of the roller 20 is supported, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, by a pair of screwthreaded rods 22 and 23 at right angles to each other and passing through brackets 24 and 25. By loosening securing nuts and lifting the rod 22 upwardly, the roller 20 is lifted and, by moving the rod 23 outwardly, it is shifted away from the drum I3.

This loosens the auxiliary blanket I! so that it' may be readily slipped from its rolls. The main blanket l5 may also be loosened by raising the outlet roller l5 which is for this purpose mounted v in adjustable bearings 25 as indicated at Fig. 1.

Both of the blankets l5 and I9 being loosened, the entrance roller I6 may be slid outwardly of the bifurcated or slotted bracket 21 in which it is supported, thus rendering it easier to remove and replacewthe auxiliary blanket l9.

Through the above invention, therefore, it is possible to obtain effective blanket thicknesses at the entrance roll while employing but a single blanket for several different types of fabric to be treated or to several different conditions of shrinkage. Also the changing in this efiective blanket thickness requires a minimum of adjustment and enables the main blanket to remain in position thereby greatly facilitating the changes required for different shrinkages.

What I claim is- 1.-A cloth finishing machine comprising a retatable drum, an endless blanket moving in contact with the surface. of said drum throughout a portion of the periphery of the latter, an entrance roller for bringing successive lengths of said blanket into contact with the rotating surface of the drum, and an auxiliary blanket between said entrance'roller and said main blanket.

2. A cloth finishing machine comprising a rotatable drum, an endless blanket moving in contact with the surface of said drum throughout a portion of the periphery of the latter, an entrance roller for bringing successive lengths of said blanket into contact with the rotating surface of the drum, an auxiliary blanket between said entrance roller and said main blanket, and a secondroller adjustable to hold said auxiliary blanket taut about said entrance roller.

3. A cloth finishing machine comprising a rotatable drum, an endless blanket moving in contact with the surfaces of said drum throughout a portion of the periphery of the latter, an entrance roller for bringing successive lengths of said blanket into contact with the rotating sur face of the drum, an auxiliary blanket between said entrance roller and said main blanket, a second roller about which said auxiliary blanket passes, and an adjustable mounting for said second roller comprising supports adjustable vertically and laterally.

JOHN F. BANNON. 

